The son of actor Jack Smethhurst, who played racist Eddie Booth in the controversial 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour says that being marri...
The son of actor Jack Smethhurst, who played racist Eddie Booth in the controversial 1970s sitcom Love Thy Neighbour says that being married to a black woman has taught him to 'recognise the insidious nature of racism'.
In an impassioned Twitter thread, actor and filmmaker Adam Smethurst, 54, revealed the impact his father's role in the sitcom, which featured a black and a white couple living side-by-side - and frequently feuding - in 1970s suburbia, has had on his life.
Adam said the programme elicited mixed responses from people, and that he'd encountered many black people who'd 'hated it', while others 'loved it' because Booth was portrayed as the bigoted 'fall guy'.
Controversial 70s show Love Thy Neighbour saw racist bigot Eddie Booth (Jack Smethurst) feuding with his neighbour Bill Reynolds (Rudolph Walker); Smethurst's son Adam, 54, has published an impassioned thread on Twitter on the show's legacy
Adam Smethurst, left, said marrying his wife Rakie, pictured with daughters Tansy, bottom right, and Shani, bottom left, had taught him about the 'most micro of micro aggressions' that black people face in 'white spaces'
The lengthy thread, which has had more than 7,000 views, sees Adam recount the changes in society he's witnessed as he's celebrated different birthdays, referencing the Black Lives Matter protests currently happening globally.
He told his followers: 'In the years since Love Thy Neighbour was taken off the air in 1976 I have heard a wide range of responses to it. Clearly it still divides opinion, though not, from my experience, down ethnic group lines.
He added: 'I have encountered black people who hated it for all the name calling it inspired and others who loved it as it was the only show that featured black people in leading roles with a bigoted racist as the fall guy.
'Each response has equal validity and as such should be equally respected.'
Adam who has two daughters, Tansy and Shani, with his wife of 20 years said that living with Rakie had made him learn 'to recognise the insidious nature of misogyny, prejudice and racism.
'How each cloaks itself as reasoned authority, playing on stereotypes and timeworn tropes, safe in the security of long held assumptions.'
Actor Jack Smethurst with his wife Julie and two grandchildren Tansy and Shani; one Twitter user said the photo, posted by Adam, '
He added: 'I have seen how much energy it takes for black people to remain on constant high alert in white spaces, ready to counter the most micro of micro aggressions that may come their way at any given moment.'
Love Thy Neighbour was set around a suburban street in Twickenham, and featured Bill and Barbie Reynolds (Rudolph Walker and Nina Beden Semper), a black couple, who lived next door to Eddie and Joan Booth (Jack Smethurst and Kate Williams).
The show has long been associated with racism and a 2007 re-boot, switching the roles of the central characters proved short-lived
Written by Vince Powell and Harry Driver, the programme focused on racial feuding between the two couples but was often attacked for promoting racial stereotypes.
Its defenders claimed it had been written to reduce racial friction by showing bigotry at its most ridiculous. A 2007 re-boot, switching the roles of the central characters, proved short-lived.
Adam's thread was widely praised; @exitthelemming wrote: 'Thank you for this. Absolutely brilliant, inspiring thread.'
@lawrencetill said: 'The picture of Jack and Julie with your girls radiates joy. I know the laughter and kindness of your family. Your experiences are a magnificent guide in the shifting times.'
@BeckyLendrum wrote: 'Thank you for sharing your story. We need more like this. Real experiences. Real emotional responses. Love. Coming together.'
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